Kurdush

I think it was a pretty decent simplified errata change for the gremlins. The models that went up in cost will still be used and the ones that went down now feel viable in some environments. Very glad to see Golem and Shinobi decrease in cost in particular. There are still a few models in need of a points decrease (or buff), but this was a very welcome step on the path towards better internal balance. I reckon it's especially tricky to get balance right by working with points cost alone in the lower range. Stuffed, Bayou and Survivors for example are now pretty much in the same spot but I definitely know which one I generally prefer. Points change alone does not feel optimal for all models I guess, just like a lot of people have already said. Emissary is one that stands out in this regard, even though a decrease would be better than nothing at all.

Merris is a great model for many schemes, plus she is Kin, if you value the theme. Sammy is also nice to have I think, she can hold the terrifying gun for instance (and she is Kin too). And a slop hauler is always nice for the healing. And besides, you might want a minion who's not stampeding across the board on some occations.

I'll write this in an existing thread, since the topic would be the same. Had a game with Ophelia vs Kirai recently as part of the Shifting Loyalties campaign. The strategy was extraction and I chose hunting party and covert breakthrough as schemes (as did my opponent). It was a fun and relaxed game and my opponent is really nice to play against. She is a lot more skilled than I am so I try to pay attention and learn some. However... I was soundly beaten and I honestly don't see a way to play evenly against the crew I was facing. It was a big game, corresponding to something like 60 normal points (76 campaign points) so I was facing Kirai, Lost Love, Datsue Ba, Izamu (with jet pack/flight as campaign upgrade, not particularly nice), Yin, Flesh construct, a couple of Onryo, Gaki and a Shikome. I had the Kin with Old Cranky and a couple of haulers. First turn, she summoned the Hanged, another Shikome and a Seishin and I started to feel a bit pressured. Next turn, she summoned another Shikome (which actually was not allowed we later realised, since the limit is 2, but that did by no means affect the outcome of the game) and a Seishin and soon another Seishin turned up and a Gaki appeared when one of my models were killed. There were spirits everywhere and I was out-activated, out gunned (they have lots of castings with good range) and I had a really hard time killing anything due to HtW and incorporeal. Covert breakthrough was not a problem with Merris and I guess I should have taken undercover entourage instead and have Sammy sneak away towards the end of the game but I thought hunting party would be good, since her crew was mainly minions and mine mainly henchmen and enforcers. I managed to kill Izamu, the flesh guy, a Shikome and an Onryo but still scored nil. Ophelia did most of the killing (everybody else in my crew kind of died) and one spirit died from burning which I forgot didn't count. I was very careful not to bring Ikiryo out, maybe that was a bit cowardly of me. I maybe could have been more agressive with Ophelia as well, since she can use stones to prevent damage, but every turn ended with a handful of consecutive spirit activations so she would have had to be really lucky in the defense in that case. I would very much like to hear some more experienced players share their thoughts regarding how best to deal with something like this. Any weaknesses at all? I couldn't figure any out myself. My friends who are participating in the same campaing (playing Neverborn, Arcanists, and Guild) also struggle. We are all more or less rookies, but still. My opponent said she didn't really see any way for me to compete either, her tip was to try and take out Lost Love but I didn't see the guy at all during the game so I don't know how that would have been achieved. Anybody got experience on how to be able to compete with this? Maybe a few tips and tricks to share?

The LaCroix family is what I've been playing in the Shifting Loyalties campaign (we´re entering our last game week now). I have hired one Slop Hauler along the way though, and Sammy only made it into the arsenal between week three and four so I haven't tried her out yet. Ophelia has been with me for one week. I am a very inexperienced player, please note, but so far I have been able to play evenly against Colette´s showgirls and the Judge and his fascist underlings (Lady J hasn't showed up yet, the Judge has had a pretty hard time otherwise). I have played fairly even games against a Nekima/Lilith crew. And... I have been utterly humiliated by Datsue Ba's spirits and will be utterly humiliated again by Kirai and said spirits soon. I feel mostly that the crew is pretty sensitive to the strategy played, due to a serious lack of staying power, and to some extent also to the opposing faction. As long as I can run around and place markers and take the occasional shot at something I'm fine. When there is a Khytera in the middle of the board and I need to compete for the turf (or similar) I'm toast. My plan was/is to post a report of the next game against ressers after it's played, similar to the thread already existing, and see if input from other gremlin commanders can help me analyse and improve my game.

I'm in pretty much the same situation and I can see my thoughts are in line with most others. I started with Ophelia's box crew and expanded with Slop haulers and Merris. They have both been included for a couple of encounters and I have so far become really fond of Merris. She has earned me many scheme-VP and I hope I'll soon get to try out her protective aura if I can get monsieur Ravage to overdo his "Oopsie" in a turf war. The latest addition is Burt, he's in the mail (together with a whisky golem who will be accompanied by the Brewmaster box next month, but that's a whole different story). Lenny feels as if he might be too powerful, but on the other hand he costs almost as much as two other models so maybe it evens out. I have also been considering Old Cranky, but I'm still in favour of the cheaper young ones for activation and upgrade purposes. I have not seen any need for pigs actually, even though it would be great fun to have a few piglets to stampede around and of course the pigapult is a fabulous contraption. Ultra cunning gremlin tech. :-)